I told you so.  Many times.  Few listened.  Many, instead, attacked the messenger.
    I have long been the Cassandra (or one of the few) crying like a voice in the wilderness concerning the nauseous destructiveness to this list embodied by the odious actions of Hermit, and many others have ignored my message, even though it was prompted by a love of this list and its original purpose, and a deep and genuine dismay at seeing it so sullied and soiled.  Instead, responding to his selective ego-stroking carrots and fearful of his vituperative sticks, many have been pulled willingly along by their ideological nose rings into supporting and applauding his execrable actions whilst smiting my dire yet now obviously truthful prophecies concerning him.  I am one of the few who has no fear of this diseased Gorgon, and we few have been roundly and unjustly stoned by the monster and his minion many because we dared to accurately describe its vomitously repulsive face.  Well, now that the disgusting ghoul has completely shucked its shielding mask and shown its ghastly visage for all who still possess vestiges of eyes to see, it's vile, vicious, vindictive and execrable nature can no longer be reasonably denied.  Once irrevocably revealed, such a foul visage can not be rehidden from list members' awareness.  Are Hermit's minions proud of his recent actions here?  Can they, in all good conscience, bring themselves to support such horrendous animality any more?  No rational human being can any further deny that he is a perhaps terminally noxious embarrassment to the credibility and integrity of this list.
    As to the sick, demented and twisted avatar, I would not be surprised if it was sent via redirector, as Hermit maintains he can use but I can't (and indeed, I have never used one, or tried to, or previously heard of its existence before he mentioned it onlist).  Whether or not such a device was used, I personally have no doubt as to the avatar's original source, nor, I believe, does anyone else here who is not totally bereft of reason.
    The larger question is whether or not David is so dependent upon Hermit's list services that he finds it impossible to discipline him?  It would seem, considering the enormity and unjustifiability of his assaults, that Hermit has no fear of list discipline whatsoever, and cares not a whit about the condemnation of 'mere' members.  If he had attacked David's mother as he has attacked mine, would David still find himself constrained to be lenient with him?  And why should an attack upon my mother rather than David's provoke any different (or lack of) moderator response? Are such services as Hermit performs a form of list blackmail the payment for which is the perpetual toleration of such intolerable behavior?
    We shall see.

Kid-A:
I have never said anything to him that remotely approaches his vile slander.
David:
I posted that single epithet to you in a fit of anger, when you appeared to me to be taking hermit's side on a question of BBS list abuse (his posting disgusting pictures to the board concerning me, and when I responded in kind, his using his position as moderator to move my pictures, but not his own).  As I recall, you demanded - and received - an apology for me.
Hermit, however, rather than engaging in a single angry slip, has engaged in a cold, calculated and continuing campaign cosisting of the list vilification of my mother and myself.  He has not only continued that campaign to the present day, but sworn publicly to the list never to apologize for it.  I trust you can discern the massive differences between these two cases.

Kid-A:
Apology accepted.  No hard feelings.
One point: I deeeply believe that if Jeffrey Dahmer shared your political positions, but was otherwise his destructive and disgusting self, he would nevertheless not be personally worthy of your support or respect.  I now see that you share that sane and sensible opinion, and this knowledge cheers me.